If we're talking solely about physical and mental strength, Naomi falls far short of Chinjao, who awakened Conqueror's Haki, but is stronger than the underage Rebecca.
Plus, she actually has some foundation herself… not some mediocre third-rate fighter, so it's understandable she could maintain some sanity under the gas's effects.
Of course, the greater possibility is still—
"'Heteromorphism'? This is truly... truly something!"
Caesar on the deck reformed his figure, then half his head was destroyed by explosive arrows again, but he showed no anger… instead, he was exceptionally delighted.
Even Orochimaru, whose throat was half-severed, showed an interested look.
His researcher instinct was at work.
"It seems your comrade is also quite 'talented'."
Because half his throat was cut, Orochimaru's speech had a leaky sound.
But the wound healed at an extremely fast rate after Karin withdrew her wing.
Pale flesh also filled the neck area of the body Orochimaru occupied, sealing the wound.
Clatter clatter!
Under Orochimaru's somewhat shocked gaze, countless chains with an illusory feel suddenly extended from mid-air, then unhesitatingly pierced his body, nailing him firmly in the air like wedges.
"This feeling... pierced through the body but not injured..."
Orochimaru looked at the [Purifying Lock] Karin used, an interested gleam also appearing in his eyes.
'Devil Fruits are truly miraculous things.'
But Karin ignored his words, glancing at Naomi still attacking Caesar over there.
Fortunately, perhaps because he wanted to observe Naomi further, Caesar didn't counterattack.
—After all, Naomi's arrows without Haki couldn't hurt him.
If that's the case, then she should deal with this guy here first.
Karin had absolutely no intention of wasting words with Orochimaru.
Learn from one bitter experience… she wouldn't entrust her comrades' lives to the enemy's mercy.
Moreover, these guys were beasts who could even harm children.
"What? Not planning to go... uh!"
Orochimaru's words were cut off as he felt a terrifying pulling force on his body.
He instinctively wanted to disperse his flesh, slipping out through the gaps in the chains.
Karin's actions brought him a strong sense of crisis, enough to make him actively consider abandoning this dragon-capable body.
But the commands his brain issued weren't accepted by his body.
What?
He was stunned.
But even more astonished was Karin.
"This is... what?"
Nirvana Purifying Lock is an ability Karin mastered after awakening. It can separate consciousness entities like spirit, soul, etc., from the physical body or place an intangible shackle on beings with self-will.
It exists somewhere between physical and spiritual.
Back then, she used this move to separate Kaguya, revived by Black Zetsu's control, from Naruto's body, with significant effect.
Although she didn't know Orochimaru's specific situation, just from that brief glimpse earlier, Karin understood the other was likely in a similar 'parasitic' state like Kaguya.
Just like Momoshiki, who still existed within her spirit.
In that case, she planned to follow the same method, first use [Purifying Lock] to separate Orochimaru's soul fused with that unknown child.
Only by having hostages in hand would there be qualifications to negotiate.
Having nothing herself would just be coercion.
However, even Karin herself didn't expect to pull out such a thing after using Purifying Lock on Orochimaru.
It didn't look like Orochimaru's soul…. instead, it seemed more like some... ghost or monster.
A black humanoid figure larger than the body Orochimaru occupied was forcefully dragged out, bound by chains like sludge.
In shape, it could barely be called humanoid, but its surface was covered in black sludge-like substance, with white bones 'embedded' on its surface-
As if some evil entity draped in human bones.
Even Orochimaru himself didn't know what this thing was.
'There's actually... such power inside my body?'
Unlike Orochimaru, Karin was on high alert.
She felt a sense of crisis from this black shadow.
It wasn't tension from encountering a powerful enemy, instead, it was more like… a natural predator?
Karin didn't realize she had actually encountered this guy before.
Because this black shadow was Hidan, who had fused with the Jashin he worshipped.
A tool character who left the stage in early chapters.
Strictly speaking, the Jashin worshipped by Hidan and his companions wasn't a 'god' with self-awareness.
The existence of the [Jashin] was originally a lie fabricated by the Jashin Cult to create immortal killing tools.
But lies told a thousand times might become true.
Low-level Jashin cultists and fanatics like Hidan genuinely believed in the Jashin's existence.
It was precisely their imagination and faith that established such a terrifying image in the collective consciousness.
And this Jashin born from human minds, using Hidan's soul and spirit as a foundation, fed on the fear and death spread by Orochimaru (One Piece Version) in Dressrosa, finally successfully manifested in the physical world under the separation of Purifying Lock.
A series of coincidences, each indispensable.
"Hehe..."
Childlike giggling sounds suddenly emerged from the humanoid figure, giving a hair-raising sense of dissonance.
"Aaaaaaaaaah!!!!"
"Aaaaaah!!!"
Several guys in protective suits looking this way suddenly let out sharp screams, then started clutching their heads, rolling on the ground.
Then their protective suits swelled up like balloons, churning for a moment before falling silent.
In contrast, those children who had covered their eyes out of fear from the beginning escaped unscathed because they didn't look directly at this Jashin.
The same went for the CP0 trio, who had their backs turned, preparing to sneak in and rescue the children, and the Tontatta Tribe, who were too short to see over the obstruction.
"I... understand... everything..."
If others reacted so strongly, Orochimaru, right beside, was even more so.
He muttered to himself, then his flesh seemed to suddenly turn into mud, rapidly melting.
In just a few seconds, Orochimaru, along with the body he occupied, melted into a pool of pinkish-white 'paste', slowly seeping into the soil.
This scene made Karin's hair stand on end, thinking she might turn into the same.
"Everyone, don't look this way!!"
She couldn't care about anything else… after shouting loudly, she immediately activated the golden light emanating from her body with maximum force.
After fusing with Pure Gold, the golden light on Karin's body was no longer just 'ambient lighting' like before.
It became strong light that could cause substantial damage to vision, even to more fragile objects.
—This was also the best method Karin could think of in an extremely short time.
Creating strong light could prevent others from looking over voluntarily. Simultaneously, dazzling their eyes so they couldn't open them for a while also bought her time.
Orochimaru's death was just too bizarre, completely unpredictable.
'Just a simple look caused death, and before dying, he said things like 'understood everything'.'
'What on earth is going on!?'